Oarlock



June 16, 1942. J. SPARKES OAR LOCK Filed April 16, 1940 s z w 2 T N WM? T Mary M V M Patented June 16, 1942 free PTENT OFFICE OARLOCK John Gordon Sparkes, Great Neck, N. Y. Application April 16, 1940, Serial No. 329,865

(Cl. 9Z(

3 Claims.

This invention relates to oar locks for row boats and the like, and has as its-principal object a design of an oar lock which will readily receive the oar, but once received will hold it in position during all normal working conditions.

Likewise, the design is of such a nature that the oar may be readily removed from the lock by the same path through which it was inserted.

In the usual types of oar locks, the lock consists essentially of a ring member mounted upon a post which is in turn mounted in a socket fastened to the side of the boat, thereby forming a swivel joint. The ring is usually opened at the tcp and each side thereof terminates in a diverging horn which permits the entry of the shaft of the car. The difficulty with this type of car lock is that the diameter of the ring is usually larger than it should be for the shaft of the oar, and the opening in the top of the ring must be as large as the shaft of the car in order to permit entrance of the oar. This results in a compromise of dimensions, which produces an car look that does not retain the car as it should, and furthermore permits of the slipping of the oar from the lock should the oar EL."

be tilted at an angle greater than the normal rowing position. The result is that an inexperienced person attempting to row a boat will invariably have diiiiculty in retaining the car in n Furthermore the design is of such a nature that it will retain the oar should it be released entirely by the hand of the boatsman, and thereby revent the cars falling overboard.

In order to more clearly disclose the invention, reference is made to the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is an elevation showing a boat with the car lock attached thereto.

Figure 2 is a perspective view showing the car look mounted in a bearing bracket and the car resting therein.

Figiue 3 is a plan view of the oar lock showing the various positions acquired by the shaft of the ear in entering or removing from the lock.

Similar reference numerals refer to similar parts throughout the drawing. In the drawing, l is a boat, 2 is a bracket attaehed thereto by suitable fastenings 3. 4 is a boss formed on the bracket. 5 is a hole through the boss, adapted to receive the shank 6 of the oar lock. At the top of the shank 6 is formed a bearing hub l, and to which is integrally attached a horn 8 and a horn 9. The horn 8 with horn 9 forms a semi-circular ring l0, adapted to engage the shaft ll of an oar. The horn 9 extends upwardly and terminates in a knob I2 which is formed on the inner surface thereof. This knob i2 acts as a stop against which the shaft H of the oar will strike when moved upward along the horn 9. The inner face of the horn 8 extends upward from the circular face H), to a point l3 which is approximately even with the top of the car shaft when set against the surface it]. From this point, the inner surface of the horn 8 is extended away from the stop position l2 on born 9 approximately along the circumference of a circle struck from the center of the stop l2, and then terminates in approximately a vertical position.

It will be seen by reference to Figure 3 that the shaft l I of the car may enter the lock by passing.

between the inner surface of the stop I2 on horn e and the inner surface I4 of the horn 8, whereupon it enters between the straight walls It: and it of the horns 8 and 9, and rests against the semi-circular ring surface l0. Obviously, to remove the oar, the shaft ll must follow through exactly the reverse direction.

When the oar is in use, the, propelling force against the car lock may be applied against either hornB or horn 9, as in each instance the stop l2 acts to prevent the car from being pulled out of the lock.

It is to be noted that inasmuch as the oar lock is always above the surface of the water, that the car when under load, that is when rowing to push the boat, is always at an angle suflicient for the blade to reach intothe water. This means that the shaft of the oar is never parallel to the water when under load, therefore some part of the shaft is in close proximity to the stop l2, which would cause any further upward movement of the shaft to be stopped before the contact of the shaft moved above the surface I3. It will thus be seen that inasmuch as there is no load on the oar while it is in a horizontal position, that there is no tendency to move out of the lock, and the entire tendency to move out is at a time when the shaft is at an angle to the horizontal. For this reason, the oar when loaded is always locked within the car look by the stop l2. Conversely, it is only necessary to bring the oar to a horizontal position in order to remove it from the look.

It is obvious that the principles of the invention may be adapted to many types of locks and mountings without departing from the scope thereof.

Having described the invention, what is claimed as new and is desired to be secured by Letters Patent, is:

1. An oar lock of the open U type for boats, comprising a U shaped member adapted to be attached to a boat, the said U shaped member comprising upwardly extending arms forming therebetween a socket for receiving the shaft of an oar, one of the said arms terminating in a stop extending into and partly closing the socket, the other arm being cut away at a position opposite the said stop to compensate for the offset of the stop and to thereby admit the shaft of an oar.

2. An oar lock of the open U type for boats, comprising a U shaped member adapted to be pivotally attached to a boat, the said U shaped member comprising upwardly extending arms forming therebetween a socket for receiving the shaft of an oar, one of the said arms terminating in a stop extending into and partly closing the socket, the other arm being cut away at a position opposite the said stop to compensate for the offset of the stop and to thereby admit the shaft of an oar.

3. An oar lock of the open U type for boats, comprising a U shaped member adapted to be pivotally attached at its center to a boat, the said U shaped member comprising upwardly extending arms forming therebetween a socket for receiving the shaft of an oar, one of the said arms terminating in a stop extending into and partly closing the socket, the other arm being cut away at a position opposite the said stop to compensate for the offset of the stop and to thereby admit the shaft of an oar.

JOHN GORDON SPARKES. 

